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Designing for mouldability

A quick-reference user guide for rapid injection moulding for engineers and designers
2nd edition

Real Parts. Really Fast.

www.protomold.co.uk
Proto Labs, Ltd. Unit A Hortonwood Industrial Estate, Hortonwood 7, Telford, Shropshire, TF1 7GX, UK +44 (0) 1952 607447

DESIGNING FOR MOULDABILITY

TABLE OF CONTENTS
What is injection moulding What is Rapid Injection Moulding Applications of Rapid Injection Moulding Wall thickness Cored geometry Recommended wall thickness Warp Sharp corners Ribs Bosses Draft Core-cavity Deep (milling) impact Texture Straight pull mould Side actions Bump off Pick-outs Steel core pins Text Tab gate Self mating parts Tolerance Choosing a material Select colours Resin additives Be the hero! 3 4 4 5 5 6 6 7 7 8 8 8 9 9 10 10 10 11 11 12 12 13 14 14 15 2 3

What is injection moulding?

1 The hopper is loaded with the plastic stock material. 2 A heated barrel is used to melt the beads into a molten form. 3 A screw apparatus is used to inject the polymer into a mould. 4 The part cools and solidifies. 5 The mould is opened and the part ejected.

2010 Proto Labs. All rights reserved. 2

DESIGNING FOR MOULDABILITY

TABLE OF CONTENTS
What is injection moulding What is Rapid Injection Moulding Applications of Rapid Injection Moulding Wall thickness Cored geometry Recommended wall thickness Warp Sharp corners Ribs Bosses Draft Core-cavity Deep (milling) impact Texture Straight pull mould Side actions Bump off Pick-outs Steel core pins Text Tab gate Self mating parts Tolerance Choosing a material Select colours Resin additives Be the hero! 3 4 4 5 5 6 6 7 7 8 8 8 9 9 10 10 10 11 11 12 12 13 14 14 15 2 3

What is rapid injection moulding?

Rapid mould fabrication
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Applications of rapid injection moulding

Prototypes. Refine your design with real moulded parts
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Moulds are made from aluminium They are 3-axis CNC milled Selective use of electrical discharge machining (EDM)

Functional testing in product development cycle Test multiple materials Try multiple versions

There are limits to complexity

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Bridge tooling
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Number of side actions at the parting line No internal threads

Production parts until production mould is ready

Low to medium-volume production

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Fast real injection moulded plastic parts

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25 to thousands of parts Just-in-time parts, use your cash for something other than inventory

CAD to plastic as fast as 1 day Standard delivery 10-15 business days

Panic situations
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Production line shutdown Crash development projects

Markets that use Rapid Injection Moulding

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Medical Automotive Electronics

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Consumer Products Appliance Other high volume parts

2010 Proto Labs. All rights reserved. 3

DESIGNING FOR MOULDABILITY

TABLE OF CONTENTS
What is injection moulding What is Rapid Injection Moulding Applications of Rapid Injection Moulding Wall thickness Cored geometry Recommended wall thickness Warp Sharp corners Ribs Bosses Draft Core-cavity Deep (milling) impact Texture Straight pull mould Side actions Bump off Pick-outs Steel core pins Text Tab gate Self mating parts Tolerance Choosing a material Select colours Resin additives Be the hero! 3 4 4 5 5 6 6 7 7 8 8 8 9 9 10 10 10 11 11 12 12 13 14 14 15 2 3

Up against the wall (thickness)

The most important design requirement for getting good moulded parts - maintain constant wall thickness.

A core issue
Core out parts to eliminate thick walls.
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You get the same functionality in a good moulded part.

Sink

As designed

As moulded

Original geometry

Warp

Cored geometry

Cored geometry

* Tip: Good injection moulded part design relies on a consistent wall thickness to minimize the potential for warped or distorted parts.

* Tip: Unnecessary thickness can throw off part dimensions, reduce strength and necessitate post-process machining.

2010 Proto Labs. All rights reserved. 4

DESIGNING FOR MOULDABILITY

TABLE OF CONTENTS
What is injection moulding What is Rapid Injection Moulding Applications of Rapid Injection Moulding Wall thickness Cored geometry Recommended wall thickness Warp Sharp corners Ribs Bosses Draft Core-cavity Deep (milling) impact Texture Straight pull mould Side actions Bump off Pick-outs Steel core pins Text Tab gate Self mating parts Tolerance Choosing a material Select colours Resin additives Be the hero! 3 4 4 5 5 6 6 7 7 8 8 8 9 9 10 10 10 11 11 12 12 13 14 14 15 2 3

Lets get absolute

Recommended absolute wall thickness by resin.

A warped personality
Eliminate sharp transitions which cause moulded-in stress.

Resin
ABS Acetal Acrylic

Recommended Wall Thickness (mm)

1.14 - 3.50 0.64 - 3.05 0.64 - 3.81 0.76 - 3.05 1.90 - 2.54 0.76 - 2.92 0.11 - 3.81 0.64 - 3.17 0.76 - 5.08 0.51 - 4.57 0.64 - 3.81 0.89 - 3.81 Design 3D structures that support themselves.

Liquid crystal polymer Long-fibre reinforced plastics Nylon Polycarbonate Polyester Polyethylene Polyphenylene sulfide Polypropylene Polystyrene

Note: These are general guidelines, subject to part geometry and moulded construction. Large parts shouldnt be designed with the minimum wall thickness. * Tip: Protomolds general rule for wall thickness is 0.040 - 0.140.

2010 Proto Labs. All rights reserved. 5

DESIGNING FOR MOULDABILITY

TABLE OF CONTENTS
What is injection moulding What is Rapid Injection Moulding Applications of Rapid Injection Moulding Wall thickness Cored geometry Recommended wall thickness Warp Sharp corners Ribs Bosses Draft Core-cavity Deep (milling) impact Texture Straight pull mould Side actions Bump off Pick-outs Steel core pins Text Tab gate Self mating parts Tolerance Choosing a material Select colours Resin additives Be the hero! 3 4 4 5 5 6 6 7 7 8 8 8 9 9 10 10 10 11 11 12 12 13 14 14 15 2 3

Get the stress out

Sharp corners weaken parts.
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Give em a good ribbing

To prevent sink, ribs should be no more than 60% of the walls thickness.

They cause moulded-in stress from resin flow. They form a stress riser in your application.

Bad

Better

Stress riser

* Tip: If Protomold asks for greater wall thickness on your 40-60% T wall, consider increasing your T wall to compensate for this increased thickness to reduce the risk of sink.

2010 Proto Labs. All rights reserved. 6

DESIGNING FOR MOULDABILITY

TABLE OF CONTENTS
What is injection moulding What is Rapid Injection Moulding Applications of Rapid Injection Moulding Wall thickness Cored geometry Recommended wall thickness Warp Sharp corners Ribs Bosses Draft Core-cavity Deep (milling) impact Texture Straight pull mould Side actions Bump off Pick-outs Steel core pins Text Tab gate Self mating parts Tolerance Choosing a material Select colours Resin additives Be the hero! 3 4 4 5 5 6 6 7 7 8 8 8 9 9 10 10 10 11 11 12 12 13 14 14 15 2 3

Thin bosses are in

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Get drafted
Draft (slope the vertical walls) as much as possible this makes it easier to eject parts without drag marks or ejector punch marks. You get better parts, faster.

Dont create thick sections with screw bosses. Thick sections can cause sink and voids in your part.

UNDRAFTED

DRAFTED

2010 Proto Labs. All rights reserved. 7

DESIGNING FOR MOULDABILITY

TABLE OF CONTENTS
What is injection moulding What is Rapid Injection Moulding Applications of Rapid Injection Moulding Wall thickness Cored geometry Recommended wall thickness Warp Sharp corners Ribs Bosses Draft Core-cavity Deep (milling) impact Texture Straight pull mould Side actions Bump off Pick-outs Steel core pins Text Tab gate Self mating parts Tolerance Choosing a material Select colours Resin additives Be the hero! 3 4 4 5 5 6 6 7 7 8 8 8 9 9 10 10 10 11 11 12 12 13 14 14 15 2 3

Core-cavity
When you draft, use Core-Cavity instead of ribs if you can. It allows you to have constant wall thickness rather than walls with a thick base. We can mill moulds with better surface finish and deliver better parts faster.

Deep (milling) impact

Draft the part as much as possible. This allows us to make deeper features for you. Draft allows us to reduce tool chatter and cosmetic defects when milling deep walls. If you can fit it in, use 1 degree of draft or more. On core-cavity designs, try to use 2 degrees or more. A rough rule of thumb is 1 degree of draft for each of the first two inches of depth. From 2 to 4 inches of depth, either 3 degrees of draft or a minimum of 1/8 thickness may be required.

Texture
Deep Rib Approach Core-cavity Approach

Protomold can add bead blast texture to the mould for your parts. Light texture requires 3 degrees of draft minimum on vertical walls. Medium texture requires 5 degrees.

* Tip: This option is faster and less expensive to manufacture.

2010 Proto Labs. All rights reserved. 8

DESIGNING FOR MOULDABILITY

TABLE OF CONTENTS
What is injection moulding What is Rapid Injection Moulding Applications of Rapid Injection Moulding Wall thickness Cored geometry Recommended wall thickness Warp Sharp corners Ribs Bosses Draft Core-cavity Deep (milling) impact Texture Straight pull mould Side actions Bump off Pick-outs Steel core pins Text Tab gate Self mating parts Tolerance Choosing a material Select colours Resin additives Be the hero! 3 4 4 5 5 6 6 7 7 8 8 8 9 9 10 10 10 11 11 12 12 13 14 14 15 2 3

Straight (pull) shooter

Sliding shutoffs are your friend these features can be made in a straight-pull mould. They do require 3 degrees of draft, but save significant money over side actions.

Just a side action

Side actions can form undercuts on the outside of your part. Undercuts must be on or connected to the parting line. They must be in the plane of the parting line. Protomold can do multiple side actions per part.

2010 Proto Labs. All rights reserved. 9

DESIGNING FOR MOULDABILITY

TABLE OF CONTENTS
What is injection moulding What is Rapid Injection Moulding Applications of Rapid Injection Moulding Wall thickness Cored geometry Recommended wall thickness Warp Sharp corners Ribs Bosses Draft Core-cavity Deep (milling) impact Texture Straight pull mould Side actions Bump off Pick-outs Steel core pins Text Tab gate Self mating parts Tolerance Choosing a material Select colours Resin additives Be the hero! 3 4 4 5 5 6 6 7 7 8 8 8 9 9 10 10 10 11 11 12 12 13 14 14 15 2 3

Bumpoff
A bumpoff is a small undercut in a part design that can be safely removed from a straight-pull mould without the use of side actions. Bumpoffs can be used to solve some simple slight undercuts, but are sensitive to geometry, material type, and orientation.

Pick-outs
A pickout is a separate piece of metal that is inserted into the mould to create an undercut. It is ejected with the part, then removed by the operator and re-inserted in the mould.
* Tip: Using a pickout overcomes many shape and positioning restrictions, but is more costly than sliding shutoffs, or using a side action.

B-side core

High-aspect-ratio small diameter holes

These holes can be made with steel core pins in the mould. A steel pin is strong enough to handle the stress of ejection and its surface is smooth enough to release cleanly from the part without draft. There shouldnt be any cosmetic effect on the resulting part, if there is, it will be inside the hole where it wont be seen.

A-side mould cavity

* Tip: Mould can be made core-cavity, allowing room for the part to bump-off after the mould opens.

2010 Proto Labs. All rights reserved. 10

DESIGNING FOR MOULDABILITY

TABLE OF CONTENTS
What is injection moulding What is Rapid Injection Moulding Applications of Rapid Injection Moulding Wall thickness Cored geometry Recommended wall thickness Warp Sharp corners Ribs Bosses Draft Core-cavity Deep (milling) impact Texture Straight pull mould Side actions Bump off Pick-outs Steel core pins Text Tab gate Self mating parts Tolerance Choosing a material Select colours Resin additives Be the hero! 3 4 4 5 5 6 6 7 7 8 8 8 9 9 10 10 10 11 11 12 12 13 14 14 15 2 3

Watch your penmanship

Choose a sans serif font where the smallest feature is at least .020 thick. Serif fonts have small tails which are often too small. Text that is raised above the part is better. We cannot polish around it if the text is cut into your part.
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Open the floodgates

Thin edges restrict flow and can break during gate trimming. We need somewhere thick to gate into your part. There may be alternatives, please contact one of our customer service engineers at +44 (0) 1952 607447 or customerservice@protolabs.co.uk.

In SolidWorks, Century Gothic 26 point regular font and 16 point bold create millable text.

Comic Sans MS 24 point

also creates millable text. For small text, a depth of 0.25-0.38mm often works well to reduce milling cost and improve ejection.

Thin edge breaks at gate

Milling cutter must be able to get into all features of mould.

2010 Proto Labs. All rights reserved. 11

DESIGNING FOR MOULDABILITY

TABLE OF CONTENTS
What is injection moulding What is Rapid Injection Moulding Applications of Rapid Injection Moulding Wall thickness Cored geometry Recommended wall thickness Warp Sharp corners Ribs Bosses Draft Core-cavity Deep (milling) impact Texture Straight pull mould Side actions Bump off Pick-outs Steel core pins Text Tab gate Self mating parts Tolerance Choosing a material Select colours Resin additives Be the hero! 3 4 4 5 5 6 6 7 7 8 8 8 9 9 10 10 10 11 11 12 12 13 14 14 15 2 3

Self-mating parts
Identical parts that flip over and mate to themselves are possible and save the cost of a second mould. Elements include:
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Be tolerant
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Protomold can hold about 0.08mm machining accuracy.

Shrink tolerance depends mainly on part design and resin choice. It varies from 0.05mm per 25.4mm for stable resins like ABS and polycarbonate to 0.65mm per 25.4mm for unstable resins like Santoprene.

Peg and hole Interlocking rim Hooks and latches

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Peg and hole/interlocking rim

There are techniques for getting the most accuracy out of our process. Please contact a Customer Service Engineer at +44 (0) 1952 607447 or customerservice@protolabs.co.uk.

Hooks and latches

2010 Proto Labs. All rights reserved. 12

DESIGNING FOR MOULDABILITY

TABLE OF CONTENTS
What is injection moulding What is Rapid Injection Moulding Applications of Rapid Injection Moulding Wall thickness Cored geometry Recommended wall thickness Warp Sharp corners Ribs Bosses Draft Core-cavity Deep (milling) impact Texture Straight pull mould Side actions Bump off Pick-outs Steel core pins Text Tab gate Self mating parts Tolerance Choosing a material Select colours Resin additives Be the hero! 3 4 4 5 5 6 6 7 7 8 8 8 9 9 10 10 10 11 11 12 12 13 14 14 15 2 3

Its material
When choosing a material for your part, relevant properties might include mechanical, physical, chemical resistance, heat, electrical, flammability, or UV resistance. Resin manufacturers, compounders and independent resin search engines have data online. For resin links, visit www.protomold.co.uk/DesignGuidelines_ResinInformation.aspx#links

Commodity resins

Engineering resins

cheap, low to medium properties. more , higher properties.

Colours stock, semi-custom, custom.

Commodity resins
Polypropylene Soft, tough, cheap, chemical resistant I High Density
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Engineering resins
ABS
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Nylon
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Inexpensive Impact Resistant Equipment and handheld housings

Reasonable cost Very strong Susceptible to shrink and warp Absorbs water dimensional

Low Density Polyethylene Soft, tough, cheap, chemical resistant I High Density
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Susceptible to sink Acetal More expensive Strong Good lubricity and machinability Very sensitive to excess

particularly glass-filled
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Low Density Polystyrene Hard, clear, cheap, brittle but can be toughened

& property change Polycarbonate

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Moderate cost Very tough Good dimensional accuracy Susceptible to chemical stress cracking, voids

wall thickness LCP

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Very expensive Very strong Fills very thin parts Weak knit lines

Polyesters PBT, PET PPS, PSU, PES, PEI Many, many others

2010 Proto Labs. All rights reserved. 13

DESIGNING FOR MOULDABILITY

TABLE OF CONTENTS
What is injection moulding What is Rapid Injection Moulding Applications of Rapid Injection Moulding Wall thickness Cored geometry Recommended wall thickness Warp Sharp corners Ribs Bosses Draft Core-cavity Deep (milling) impact Texture Straight pull mould Side actions Bump off Pick-outs Steel core pins Text Tab gate Self mating parts Tolerance Choosing a material Select colours Resin additives Be the hero! 3 4 4 5 5 6 6 7 7 8 8 8 9 9 10 10 10 11 11 12 12 13 14 14 15 2 3

Select colours
Stock colours from the resin vendor are typically black and natural. Natural might be white, beige, amber, or some other colour. Semi-custom colours are created when colorant pellets are added to natural resins. For available colours, visit www.protomold.co.uk/DesignGuidelines_ResinInformation.aspx#Colours. There is no added charge for our inventory colours. They are not an exact match and may create streaks or swirls in parts. Custom colours match exactly to a Pantone or color chip. You work with a compounder and provide us the resin. This process is slower and more expensive, but produces a more accurate match.

Resin additives
(Short) glass fibres are used to strengthen a composite and reduce creep, especially at higher temperatures. They make the resin stronger, stiffer, and more brittle. They can cause warp due to the difference in cooling shrink between the resin and the fibres. Carbon fibre is used to strengthen and/or stiffen a composite and also to aid in static dissipation. It has the same limitations as glass fibres. Carbon fibre can make plastic very stiff. Minerals such as talc and clay are often used as fillers to reduce the cost or increase the hardness of finished parts. Since they do not shrink as much as resins do when cooled, they can reduce warping. PTFE (Teflon) and molybdenum disulfide are used to make parts self lubricating in bearing applications. Long glass fibres are used like short glass fibres to strengthen and reduce creep, but make the resin much stronger and stiffer. The downside is that they can be particularly challenging to mould parts with thin walls and/or long resin flows. Aramid (Kevlar) fibres are like glass fibre only not as strong, but less abrasive. Glass beads and mica flakes are used to stiffen a composite and reduce warping and shrinkage. With high loading they can be challenging to inject. Stainless steel fibres are used to control EMI (electromagnetic interference) and RFI (radio frequency interference) typically in housings for electronic components. They are more conductive than Carbon fibre. UV inhibitor for outdoor applications. Static treatments make resins dissipate static.

2010 Proto Labs. All rights reserved. 14

DESIGNING FOR MOULDABILITY

TABLE OF CONTENTS
What is injection moulding What is Rapid Injection Moulding Applications of Rapid Injection Moulding Wall thickness Cored geometry Recommended wall thickness Warp Sharp corners Ribs Bosses Draft Core-cavity Deep (milling) impact Texture Straight pull mould Side actions Bump off Pick-outs Steel core pins Text Tab gate Self mating parts Tolerance Choosing a material Select colours Resin additives Be the hero! 3 4 4 5 5 6 6 7 7 8 8 8 9 9 10 10 10 11 11 12 12 13 14 14 15 2 3

Be the hero!
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Get real plastic injection moulded parts made for your project faster than your competitors. Shave days or weeks off the prototyping cycle. Save the day in a line-down situation. Cut out the middle man work with a company that has sales and manufacturing on the same campus.

Questions?
Call your Account Manager or a Customer Service Engineer at +44 (0) 1952 607447.

2010 Proto Labs. All rights reserved. 15

Protomold is a service of Proto Labs, the worlds fastest source for custom CNC machined and injection moulded parts. We offer interactive and highly-illustrated ProtoQuote online quotations, backed up by a streamlined manufacturing system that can ship real injection moulded parts in as little as one business day.

www.protomold.co.uk T: +44 (0) 1952 607447 Proto Labs, Ltd. Unit A, Hortonpark Industrial Estate Hortonwood 7, Telford Shropshire TF1 7GX United Kingdom Proto Labs, Inc. 5540 Pioneer Creek Drive Maple Plain, MN 55359 United States Proto Labs G.K. 729 Nakano Ebina City, Kanagawa 243-0425 Japan

www.protomold.co.uk